Editorial: Hits and misses

HIT &GT;&GT; We appreciate the extraordinary efforts being made to repair a priceless piece of local history, the Bidwell Bowl Amphitheater on Big Chico Creek near Bidwell Mansion.

There's a rock wall on the back side, about 4 feet tall, and it has fallen victim to mindless vandalism (sorry for the redundancy there). The city hired American Masonry to restore the wall, and Cory Reynolds, a third-generation mason, spent considerable time trying to make the patch job look like an old wall, not a new wall.

He mixed mortar and added gray to try to match the aged look of the 76-year-old wall. The company also purchased a ton of basalt stones in an attempt to match the existing rocks, which originally came from upper Bidwell Park.

Reynolds says the patch job will look better as it ages, but it already looks good. We appreciate his meticulous effort.

MISS &GT;&GT; Now that the city has made an attempt to repair the historic Bidwell Bowl Amphitheater, how about doing something about the cause of the problem?

It's a little hidden, but not so far off the beaten path that authorities should ignore it as much as they do. We think a combination of city parks workers driving and walking through, and city and university police officers walking or driving by would end some of the drugging, vandalism and loitering that goes on there.

For those who think the University Police Department can't help because it's on city property, think again. It's right on the university border. Besides, the UPD isn't exactly overtaxed, especially at this time of year. Get out in the community and help, instead of chasing parking violators.

HIT &GT;&GT; Nahshon Garrett, an All-American wrestler and inspiring success story, has always shown uncommon good sense, and he displayed it again this week when he came home to Chico to, as sports writer Joseph Shufelberger put it, "give back to the sport and area that give him so much."

Garrett took time out from his busy wrestling schedule, which has landed him in some international meets, to return to Chico for the Big Red Wrestling Camp at his alma mater, Chico High School.

Garrett has finished in the top three in the nation in wrestling his first two years at Cornell University in New York and has his eyes set on an NCAA title. But he also looks back, which is why he got on the mat and wrestled at coach Keith Rollins' camp for wrestlers from 8 to 17 years old.

Garrett said it is a pleasure "to help out with a wrestling program that's helped me be who I am today and has helped me excel in a lot of areas of my life."

MISS &GT;&GT; Another sign that one-party rule in Sacramento is a problem came over the weekend.

Despite concerns raised by Republicans over various items in the budget, it passed on a party-line vote. Democrats have a super-majority in the Legislature, so they don't need to listen to Republicans — and usually don't.

Their deaf ears will haunt them on the bullet train fiasco. Despite mounting evidence in poll after poll that voters feel they were fed a heavy dose of fiction on high-speed rail, the Legislature keeps pouring money into the boondoggle at Gov. Jerry Brown's insistence. The governor wants to leave a legacy. This is the wrong kind.

The budget included a provision that will take money from the state's cap-and-trade scheme on greenhouse gas emissions and using it to funnel millions to the bullet train project. The state was worried that if it couldn't find funding, it would lose federal funding.

The state lost its credibility on high-speed rail long ago. Now no Democrat is willing to stand in front of the runaway train.

"Hits and Misses" appears each Saturday. Items are compiled by the editorial board.